FIFA U17 Women's World Cup: Olowookere, Ajakaye Relish Q/final Ticket

FIFA U17 Women's World Cup: Olowookere, Ajakaye Relish Q/final Ticket

Flamingos head coach, Bankole Olowookere and two Woman of the Match award winner, Opeyemi Ajakaye have expressed their happiness with the team after picking one of the quarterfinal tickets, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

Having lost the first group match to Germany (1-2), the Nigeria U17 girls rose to beat New Zealand 4-0 and Chile 2-1 in their Second and last group games respectively to secure passage into the last eight.

Speaking immediately after the last group match on Monday afternoon, the head coach, Bankole Olowookere said, "I am happy we made it into the last eight, and that we sustained our winning mentality even though we only needed a draw to sail through.”

He praised the fighting spirit of his players during the match, “We missed several chances again, but I like the spirit of the team and we will get better as we go on in the competition."

On her part, Woman of the Match winner, Ajakaye Opeyemi stated, "Happy to have received the player of the match award against Chile! Even happier to have qualified for the knockout stage!!

Opeyemi won her second consecutive Woman of the Match in the tournament. With the ticket, Nigeria has qualified for the fourth time to play in the quarterfinal of the competition since its inception.